911 briefs -- Published Dec. 4, 2012

Tuesday

Dec 4, 2012 at 12:01 AM

STOCKTON - San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office investigators are asking for the public's help in finding 83-year-old Robert Picetti, who was last seen by a family member about 4 p.m. Thanksgiving Day - 12 days ago.

The Record

STOCKTON - San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office investigators are asking for the public's help in finding 83-year-old Robert Picetti, who was last seen by a family member about 4 p.m. Thanksgiving Day - 12 days ago.

Deputies were first alerted to Picetti having disappeared at 6:15 p.m. Friday. Deputies reported Picetti's niece told them she usually talks with her uncle every three to four days, but she had not heard from him.

She checked his residence, searching the house and backyard but didn't find him. Nothing appeared to be displaced or look suspicious.

Deputies also searched the area but came up empty.

The niece reported that sometimes her uncle goes mushroom hunting in the Ione area during the season.

He has no medical or mental complications and is reportedly very healthy, deputies reported.

Picetti is described as 5 feet 8 inches tall, 160 pounds with brown eyes, gray hair, a mustache and a small beard.

A search has been started in conjunction with Amador County deputies along Highways 88 and 124. The investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office at (209) 468-4400. To remain anonymous, you can text the information to investigators with a cellphone to 274637 (CRIMES); text SJSO, and then provide your tip.

STOCKTON - No one was injured after a fleeing stolen vehicle was intentionally rammed into a police cruiser Sunday night, Stockton police reported.

While patrolling the area near East Rose and North Center streets about 9:30 p.m. Sunday, officers discovered an occupied stolen vehicle and attempted to pull it over. Instead, the vehicle failed to yield and led officers on a three-minute, two-mile pursuit on city streets at speeds up to 50 mph.

After the stolen vehicle incapacitated the police car, it continued to East Magnolia and North San Joaquin streets, where the two occupants left the vehicle and fled on foot, police reported.

A short time later, police apprehended and arrested Anthony Soares on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, possessing a stolen vehicle, failure to yield, hit-and-run, conspiracy and resisting arrest.

They also arrested Raul Avalos on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, possessing a stolen vehicle and conspiracy.

SACRAMENTO - Christopher J. Tonkin, 38, of Brentwood, formerly of Tracy, was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge William Shubb to five years in prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release, for the receipt and sharing of child pornography, according to U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner.

According to court documents, between March 24, 2008, and Feb. 11, 2011, Tonkin received visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Among the files were images and movies with file names that described sex with 12- and 13-year-old boys.

On Feb. 16, 2011, agents executed a search warrant at Tonkin's house. They found an external hard drive that was connected to a desktop computer that Tonkin had used to store images of child pornography downloaded through a file-sharing network.

A forensic examination of the external hard drive found that it contained more than 50,000 images and more than 5,000 videos of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

As part of the file-sharing network, Tonkin also made his collection of images available to other collectors to upload in exchange for their images and videos, the documents say.

The case was the product of an investigation by the California Department of Justice and the Sacramento Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.